Picking Up The Pieces
by MarigoldMusings
Summary: Tucker and Benson navigate life post-Manhattan Transfer.
1. Chapter 1

**Tuckson Oneshot (I think). Benson recently reinstated, post-Manhattan Transfer and Unholiest Alliance**

Benson was not having a good day.

After rotting in Community Affairs for several weeks, she found it difficult to regain her edge. It didn't help that her squad hadn't seemed to gel while she was away. Rollins and Fin, usually cordial and collegial, were at each other's throats, Carisi was distracted, and Dodds, well, she had never really warmed up to Dodds. She couldn't bring herself to trust Dodds. She couldn't trust anybody.

"Lieutenant?"

Benson looked up. Carisi was standing in the door with a bouquet of flowers—daffodils.

"They're not from me," Carisi quipped. He dropped them carefully on her desk, turned to leave, but spun around on his heel. "It's good to have you back, Lieutenant."

She nodded cordially, "It's good to be back." She wasn't so sure about that, but Carisi didn't need that information. Olivia did offer him a slight smile. After all, Sonny was the only squad member who was acting normally around her.

The flowers were from Tucker. She knew it before opening the card. He had been sending her flowers every week since she reclaimed her office at SVU. He had nothing better to do. Still waiting for his own reinstatement, he busied himself by picking up Noah from daycare some afternoons and looking after him for the entire day on Fridays, the day Olivia's flowers usually arrived. Tucker claimed Noah picked them out, but the symbolic meaning of each bouquet was well beyond her son's expertise. The first Friday he sent daisies (loyal love and cheerfulness), the next week he sent Gardenias (secret love), and today daffodils appeared, a dozen of them, and the card read, _Daffodils for Olivia—joy and happiness forever. Love, E and N._ She pictured Ed and Noah at the park, they were probably there now, and she smiled, satisfied and happy because Noah was satisfied and happy. Ed? She wasn't sure about him.

Benson slid the humungous glass vase to the corner of her desk, then moved it behind her; the floppy yellow blooms blocked her view of the squad room. She sent a quick thank-you text to Tucker who immediately responded with a photo of Noah sliding down a very tall slide.

"Be careful," she whispered to herself, staring at the picture. Noah's gleeful expression showed no fear. One little hand gripped the edge of the slide and the other gave the cameraman a little wave. Olivia heard Tucker's voice in her head.

"Wave to mommy, bud," Tucker had probably said. His backlit shadow was also in the photo, one of his own arms in the air, coaxing Noah into the pose. She noticed Tucker had overdressed her son, he wore a knit beanie, scarf, and his winter parka on this balmy April day.

She smiled at the phone, amused by how Ed, father of two grown daughters, tried so hard to prove he was a competent caregiver.

"Liv?"

"Fin, hey, what's going on?"

"We got a call. The two boys in Harlem who were missing?"

During her time in Community Affairs, Olivia did her best to keep abreast of SVU's cases thanks to Carisi and Rollins. Plus, she wasn't completely cut off from the NYPD, or the mainstream media, and the missing boys had been all over the news, their faces plastered on storefronts, train stations, and bus canopies around the cities. As she stewed in her cubicle, Benson continued to believe she and Tucker would be fully exonerated, cleared, and soon return to their old positions of power.

"Oh, no," Olivia responded to Fin's downcast expression.

"Yeah," he said softly, "Pulled one out of the Hudson. Boat rental guys spotted him."

"Go ahead with Rollins. I'll be right behind you." She felt a sudden surge of adrenaline. It felt good despite the horrific circumstances.

On the drive uptown to Riverside Park, Benson rehashed details of the case in her head. James Hayes and Jarvis Lewis, two seventh-graders, went missing after lacrosse practice two weeks ago. The boys were teammates on Harlem's elite PEP Club Lacrosse Team, an organization that targeted the most troubled neighborhood kids. PEP had offered a $10,000 reward for the boys' safe return. After their disappearance, volunteers and police investigators scoured their home turf, to no avail, until this morning's grisly discovery.

When Benson arrived on the scene, divers were preparing to enter the water in search of the second boy. Rollins, Fin, and other uniformed officers crouched around the body.

After two decades on the force, Benson had seen her share of dead bodies, but previously submerged corpses were the worst. The brackish river water mutated human tissue; the boy was an eerie pale gray with pinkish blots where river denizens had nibbled at him. The skin stretched, clinging to the bloated body, looking like, at any time, the boy's outer layer would simply split open. His closed eyes, nose, and lips bulged from his face, abnormally enlarged. Benson hoped news of the discovery would not quickly reach the neighborhood and the boys' families. No parent needed to see a child like this.

The unis scattered throughout the park, interviewing witnesses and notating the location of surveillance cameras, and the Medical Examiner walked in between Rollins and Fin. "I'll need to get him back to the morgue for identification," she waved over her crew who came in with a body bag. "When I get him on the table, I'll let you know for sure, but it doesn't look like he's been in too long."

"How long?" Rollins asked. "They've been missing for fifteen days."

She shrugged, "He's awfully clean for two weeks. Hardly any marks at all, and some of these look pre-mortem. But, like I said, I need to get him out of here to know for sure."

Olivia didn't entirely believe the ME. _Looks like a lot of marks to me._

"Anything in his pockets?" Rollins asked.

"No pockets," Fin pointed out, "Those are lacrosse shorts."

"He's got a jersey on," Benson pointed out, "Flip him over."

The ME gently turned the boy halfway on his side so the detectives could inspect the back of the jersey.

"Hayes," Fin muttered the name printed in block lettering, "James. Number seven."

"DETECTIVES!"

A uni called over to them. Two members of the dive team had resurfaced and were standing on the concrete ledge, water beading on their black neoprene suits, and one of them held a sodden duffle bag.

"The press. They're here," Fin whispered to Olivia.

"Ok. Just, _let's get him out of here_ ," she implored, exasperated at the laggardly ME team. She then turned her attention to Rollins, "Amanda, get that bag secured and into evidence. Now."

"Got it."

"Lieutenant!" Carisi called to Olivia as he jogged toward her. "What's the situation?"

"Pulled one of the boys from the river about an hour ago. The divers found a bag. Fin's on his way to the ME's office, and Rollins is working with the dive team. Why don't you head over to the docks and start interviewing the guys at the yacht rental place. They're the ones who saw him first."

Carisi nodded dutifully.

Confident the scene was secure and the investigation was proceeding, Benson headed toward the press gaggle, about twenty people in all. Surely, more were on the way.

"Guys, I'm going to have to ask you to stay back behind the tape," she asked but really ordered, in the groove now, thrilled to be back in charge.

"Lieutenant Benson?" Olivia's least favorite news outlet, _The Ledger_ , had sent one of their young guns, a squirrely, suspicious newbie who couldn't have been more than twenty years old. "Lieutenant? An update? Were both boys recovered?" He peered at her through thick black hipster glasses, his eyes wide and probing. He could care less about the case. He wanted a _story_.

Olivia spoke loudly and forcefully, "NYPD will have no comment at this time. Please give us time to do our jobs, to conduct the investigation, and you'll be informed when we're prepared to give a statement." The reporters fired unanswered questions at Benson as she walked away toward the river, leaving them corralled behind the yellow tape.

"Rollins, the bag?"

"On its way to the lab."

"Divers find anything else?"

"Nothing," she reported, "they want someone to look at the currents before they go in again. Said visibility is horrible. Also, something doesn't make sense. If he was thrown in up in Harlem, he would have drifted farther out in two weeks."

Benson looked around and spotted one of the divers. "Officer!"

"Yeah?" he replied, still breathless and shivering a bit.

"Were the bag and body caught in something?"

"I didn't recover the body," he pointed over to another diver, "he did, but they saw him just as the taxi was docking. It may have been. The bag was caught in some roots and rocks. We'll go back in, but we need to narrow the search area."

Benson mumbled her thanks. "Rollins!"

"Lieutenant?"

"Let's get to work pulling the footage from the street cams and the park cams. Also, canvass the area, most of the buildings on Riverside Drive have doormen, and cameras. We'll need warrants for the cameras, I'll get those, but the doormen may have seen something."

"Got it."

Olivia's phone vibrated. It was Fin, texting from the ME's office.

 _Autopsy on hold until tomorrow. Notification?_

Benson told him to come back to the park to pick her up. They would go see the families together.

….

Noah removed his beanie and yanked at the neck of his parka. He delivered the cap to Tucker who then went to work unraveling the fleece scarf and unzipped the coat.

"Better?"

Noah shrugged off the coat. Ed shoved the hat and scarf in a sleeve, rolled the tiny parka into a cylindrical shape and tucked it under his arm. He surveyed the playground. An assortment of caregivers kept careful watch on their charges. Most were nannies with over-packed strollers, but there were also mothers and fathers and, Ed guessed, older brothers and sisters. The pleasant spring weather attracted a crowd.

He missed his gun. Suspension with pay meant he had to relinquish his weapon and his badge; this was the first time in his thirty-year career that he'd been suspended. Adding insult to injury was the fact that he was innocent. And, to make things _even_ worse, the investigation was in its final stages. The independent panel enlisted to help SVU untangle the web of corruption in the Catholic Church, state government, and the NYPD had all but officially cleared him. Ed was in a holding pattern waiting for the official nod to return to his desk at IAB.

Tucker trailed Noah protectively as he darted from one apparatus to another. He held Noah as he navigated monkey bars, balance beams, and now the merry-go-round. Tucker helped him up onto the platform. "Hold on tight," he said. Noah grabbed the yellow plastic railing as directed. One of the nannies turned the kids slowly and the kids shrieked with delight. Tucker stepped back.

"Good to see some other dads here," A man, probably half Ed's age came and stood beside him. Ed sized the man up with a sideways look. Khaki cargo pants, fitted t-shirt (one of those that were supposed to look old but were actually new), baseball cap… he looked every bit the young, hip professional whose family and many others like his had rapidly invaded the west side in recent years. It was people like this who Ed blamed for the demise of the neighborhood's gritty, localized character, but he did appreciate being acknowledged as a father rather than a grandfather.

"Yeah, we're certainly outnumbered," Tucker joked, eyes still on Noah. Tucker didn't fully trust the merry-go-round or the nanny.

"How many do you have?"

 _How many?_

 _Oh. Kids._

"Just one here," Ed pointed to Noah, not interested in explaining that he wasn't Noah's dad. "You?" He asked, feeling obligated to return the question.

"Two. One here, in the pink jacket. My oldest, Sam, is over at the monkey bars."

Ed nodded. He hadn't done small talk at the park for twenty years. He didn't know what to say or what he would possibly have in common with this guy.

Just then the nanny stopped the ride to allow other kids to hop on and Noah, who had been balancing himself fairly well, stumbled forward and hit his chin against the hard plastic bar. He froze, stunned, but then burst into tears and looked around frantically. "TUCK!"

Ed rushed over and held him tightly. He felt the moisture of Noah's tears on his neck. "It's ok. You're ok, buddy. Lemme see." He tipped the boy's head back and inspected his mouth. There was a bump forming on his chin and his lip was bleeding from a tiny cut. Tucker reached around in his pockets for a tissue but ended up using the corner of his polo shirt to dab the blood.

"Tuuuuuck," Noah whimpered, again using his usual moniker for Tucker. Ed brought him back against his chest. Noah wrapped his arms around Tucker's neck and buried his face into his shoulder, smearing more blood on the polo. He was no longer crying.

"Let's go get some ice on that lip," Tucker said, "and then we'll get some lunch."

….

Olivia arrived home that evening slightly later than expected and found Tucker in the rocking chair with Noah; Ed held Noah's boo bunny to the boy's chin. U2, older stuff, played softly from the iPad.

"Hey," she greeted them softly, "What happened?"

"He hit his chin at the park. Merry-go-round. Bloody lip, too. He'll have a bruise, but he took it like a champ."

Olivia picked up her son and cradled him, "Hi, sweet Noah. I missed you today." She noticed the bump and the slightly enlarged lower lip, but he would be fine. She was past the stage of worrying about every little cut and bruise. She shifted him to her hip and reached in her bag for a pair of manila folders. She handed them to Ed.

"Do you know these two?"

Tucker examined the photos. "What's going on?"

"The two boys we pulled from the river today? Well, they were part of PEP."

"That Lacrosse program for at-risk kids?"  
"Yes. And these two cops are the only active-duty officers who volunteer there on a regular basis. It's mostly rookie cops and neighborhood people, but the witnesses we interviewed today said the boys spend a lot of time with these two."

"I know this one, Cartwright," Tucker held up the officer's photograph, "accused of taking bribes two or three years ago, but nothing stuck. And the accuser recanted."

Benson shook her head, "Kind of a big leap from bribery to murdering two thirteen-year-olds."  
"The other one, I don't know him, but I know his captain. He's sketchy. We've never dealt with him at IAB, but I knew him coming up."

"Sketchy? How?" Olivia was on the sofa now, across from Ed who still held the pastel green boo bunny between his thumb and index finger.

"Liked prostitutes. Strip clubs. Hard core drinker. Profanity every other word. Just a nasty guy." Tucker flipped through their jackets absent-mindedly, not looking for anything in particular, but it felt good to do something cop-like again.

"We don't have anything solid," Olivia explained, "still going through cameras trying to figure out where and how the boys got into the park. And then, of course, into the river."

"That's a lot of cameras."

"Several hundred."

"Squad on it now? I thought you would be later than this."

"Rollins and Carisi are going to spend another couple hours on the cameras and then re-canvass in the morning. We also have some people from the Harlem precinct going through the footage, too. They don't need me now. I told them to call if they found something."

Olivia put Noah down, walked over to Ed, grabbed both hands, and pulled him up so his face was as close to hers as possible without touching. "How are you?"

She studied his expression carefully. Her question was sincere and multilayered; she had been asking it a lot lately. Ed knew she wanted to know how the day went, but she was also concerned about how he was dealing with being away from IAB. She knew the suspension damaged his psyche, nicked his confidence, and she also suspected caring for Noah would soon become a burden rather than a welcome distraction which Ed insisted it was.

"I'm great when you're here," he did his best to sound upbeat, but his blue eyes conceded only dejection. "We had a good day. I fed him, but I waited for you," he kissed her lightly on the forehead, "you look happy," He did his best to sound cheerful for her. They were both mired in despondency lately, and he was genuinely happy at least one of them was resurfacing.

Olivia was trying her best _not_ to look happy. This tragic and heart-wrenching day included, for her, a silver lining; she had been propelled back into NYPD's _real_ world and hadn't missed a beat. "It was good," she admitted, "but this case, it's going to be tough, especially if those two are involved. It could get ugly. Again." Olivia rolled her eyes, "I cannot believe this, more dirty cops."

"I can poke around a little bit tomorrow," Tucker offered.

"Just be careful, Ed, you're so close to being reinstated."

"I know," he wanted to change the subject, "so, do you want to eat? Noah had pizza. I can order something else, or…"

Olivia released Ed from her embrace and grabbed the iPad, "Noah," she addressed her son sweetly, "I'm going to put a video on for you, sweet boy." Noah, looking sleepy, went over to his child-sized bean bag chair and happily began watching the animation. Olivia covered him with a blanket.

"He'll be out soon," she took Ed's hand, "Come on."

…

One of the things Tucker loved about being with Benson was that their lovemaking was always different and exciting in its own unique way, depending on circumstances. Tonight, Olivia sensed Ed needed to be in control, to be the Man, the commander…the Captain, and she submitted to him as he gently lifted her onto the bed. Appreciative and overcome with affection for her, he was tender and careful and proceeded more slowly than usual, trying to soak up every last bit of her and savor the moment. Afterward, they lay facing one another. For a while they were silent and just stared into each other's eyes; Olivia's hands were tucked under her head, and Ed, unable to resist touching her, ran his fingers along the outline of her body. Then, he thanked her.

This bewildered Olivia. She could not recall ever having been thanked after sex, and Ed's "thank you" was so raw with emotion, it nearly brought her to tears.

"For what?" She whispered.

"It would have been easier for you to think I had done something wrong."

Olivia reached over and touched his face, "I never thought you did anything wrong. Not for one second."

"So even if we weren't together? You would've still stuck by me?"

Olivia furrowed her brow, "I don't know if I can answer that. It's too hypothetical. I knew you were innocent _because_ we're together, because I know you, because you looked me in the eyes and told me you didn't do anything." She couldn't believe it. Ed Tucker's eyes were glassy. Not quite full of tears, but close. "I trust you."

He held her hand, "I trust you, too."

"Everything will be back to normal soon," she assured him, "and now that…everyone knows about us, that's one less thing to worry about."

"I never want to worry about us."

"Then, like you said, if there's ever a conflict—"

"No," he interrupted, "I don't mean with work. I mean you and me, right here, whatever happens, _ever_ , I want to know, this, us, right here, _this_ won't go away."

With each passing day and conversation, Tucker continually surprised her by adding more and more layers to his non-IAB self, and, consequently, kept adding more and more depth to Olivia's love for him. She appreciated how hard it was for him to say what he just said, and she tried to sound as comforting as possible. "It won't," she assured him. "I promise."

Tucker leaned over and kissed her, still staring into her eyes. Just as he was pulling her body toward him, Benson's phone vibrated.

She pulled away, "I'm sorry, I—"

"I understand." He really did.

She looked at the screen and collapsed, exasperated, against the pillows. "They found something on the cameras. I have to go."

"Ok."

"I'll call Lucy."

"What for? I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."

"I don't want—"

Ed sure had been doing a lot of interrupting lately. "Olivia. Go. I'm here. I'll put Noah to bed and I'll be here when you get back."

She leaned over, half-clothed, and kissed him. "And then we'll have dinner?"

"I'll wait."

Olivia rushed from the bedroom to finish prepping to go back to the precinct. Tucker propped himself up against the pillows, hands clasped behind his head, and smiled, content, soaking up the serenity of the moment.

 **Oneshot or Chapter One? Review or let me know fid2916 on Twitter. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Two.**

Olivia arrived and found Carisi and Rollins poring over surveillance footage, stopping, reversing, and replaying in slow motion a five second clip of what appeared to be two young men.

"Lieutenant, we think this is them," Carisi reported. "The picture isn't great, but it looks like they both have duffle bags. Two black males. Heading toward the park at 133rd."

Olivia squinted at the screen. "Anyone following?"

"Not that we can tell," Rollins answered.

"Have we heard from the oceanographer?"

Carisi shook his head, "Not yet."

"Ok, so we have to wait on that," Benson sounded impatient, but she was wondering why she was called in for this, "let's get that tape to TARU so they can enhance it. What time was that?"

"About eight-thirty. The coach said practice ended at seven, so we have about ninety minutes unaccounted for," Carisi said.

"We dumped both boys' phones," Rollins added, "nothing other than teenage stuff. No calls, just texts, and nothing after nine that night except for people trying to reach them."

"Which people?"

Carisi ticked off a list which included parents, grandparents, other relatives, several friends, the lacrosse coach, and, "another person we couldn't really connect with the boys. Benjamin Cartwright?"

Olivia snapped her head up, "Cartwright? I know about him. His name came up when Fin and I talked to the team earlier today."

Rollins scrolled through her notes, "Yeah," she said slowly, "we talked to him and another cop, Dunmore, right after the boys went missing. They were the ones who called it in actually."

"Why them?" Carisi asked.

"They're PEP volunteers, both played lacrosse in high school."

"Are they partners?"

"No, but they grew up together in Jersey. Cartwright is out of the two-eight, and Dunmore is in narcotics."

Olivia shuddered. This was terrible timing. Absolutely no one—the public, politicians, judges, police officers—had recovered from the sex trafficking scandal and now it looked like SVU was going to at least have to investigate the possibility of dirty cops, without the official assistance of Tucker.

"I'll call IAB."

At Olivia's mention of IAB, Rollins and Carisi shot one another an awkward glance and Olivia noticed.

"Guys," she began, "this _cannot_ get weird among us. I know…I know I didn't help matters by keeping things secret and it came out at the worst possible time, but we need to move past it."

"We get it, Lieutenant," Carisi said kindly, "you, Tucker, you did such a good job of being professional about it on the job, none of us had any clue. It was just a surprise."

Rollins, who, like Olivia, had been arrested by Tucker, still harbored resentment toward him because of it, but she knew she was on thin ice with Benson and her boss's love life wasn't her business anyway. Still, it would take time for her to stop seeing Tucker as the enemy. "He's right," Rollins was content to let Carisi speak for the both of them. "Just out of curiosity, why isn't Tucker back at IAB yet?"

Benson shrugged, "I was temporarily reassigned because of my alleged bias toward him. He was accused of serious crimes. The process just takes longer, they're still piecing 1PP back together, and his official reinstatement doesn't seem to be a priority."

"Maybe waiting until a new chief is named?" Carisi suggested.

"Maybe." Olivia redirected the conversation to the matter at hand, "Anyway, I'll call Sergeant Draper before we move forward with Cartwright and Dunmore, but you two go out to the neighborhood. It's almost ten-thirty. Maybe someone remembers seeing the boys that night."

Before Olivia called Cole Draper, she sent a text to Ed. _Please eat dinner, I could be a while._

….

"PEP. Police empowering people. And they're partnering up there in Harlem with Hudson University lacrosse?"

Ed sat across from Olivia in a small booth at a small neighborhood diner. Noah sat next to Olivia in a booster seat and entertained himself with crayons. He occasionally picked at his pancakes. Saturday morning breakfast had become part of their routine.

Olivia took a bite of her eggs and nodded. "Yes, you remember, 1PP created PEP in order to smooth over community relations during the stop-and-frisk protests."

"Yes, ok," Ed recalled, "but lacrosse? In Harlem?"

"That's the brainchild of Hudson Teachers College. It started as a thesis project. And lasted," Olivia reported brightly, "they were featured in a Sports Illustrated article last year."

"You read _Sports Illustrated_?" Tucker looked at her quizzically.

"No," Olivia said through a giggle, "Carisi knew about it."

Ed smiled at her adoringly. He loved seeing her smile. "Come here," he leaned over the table as far as he could, and repeated himself, "come _here_." Olivia stretched her torso forward, the hard lacquered edge of the table cutting into her ribcage. Ed kissed her quickly.

Olivia beamed at him. She was not normally a PDA fan, but with Ed it felt so natural and _right_ , and he was so cute just then she couldn't resist.

"So," Olivia switched back to serious, "I'm meeting with Draper Monday." She hated bringing this up, but Ed had to know.

Ed pressed his lips together and nodded, "Yeah, probably a good idea to get IAB in the loop sooner rather than later."

Olivia massaged her forehead, "I cannot believe this is happening."

Ed forced a laugh, "I know. I wish I could help. Hopefully soon."

"Carisi had a good point last night," Olivia said, trying to sound reassuring, "That maybe they're waiting for a new chief to be sworn in before they close the investigation."

"Carisi? You talked to him about me?" Ed inquired, sounding uptight.

"No," Olivia reached out and wrapped her fingers across his forearm. He was tense. "When the names of those two cops came up, I said I would get in touch with IAB…and Rollins and Carisi, the look they gave one another, I had to clear things up with them. And I'll have to do it again with Fin and with Barba. And with Dodds…if he lasts."

"What did you say?"

"I told them we needed to move on. Carisi, he told me they were just surprised that we were so, um, so normal around one another at the precinct. Then Rollins asked about you."

"How did they expect us to act?" Ed asked incredulously, "Did they think you'd be sitting on my lap in the squad room?" Envisioning this, they both started laughing. Mimicking them, Noah started cracking up, too.

"Is that funny, Noah?" Olivia cooed at him, pulling him close and kissing him on the top of his head. She turned her attention back to Ed, "Maybe I need to just take everyone out for drinks and set the record straight. We're getting back to normal, nothing has changed, maybe we should have disclosed earlier, maybe I screwed up by not being prepared to answer questions about us, but what's done is _done_." Olivia lightly slapped the table with both hands.

"It might be tough for a while, take some getting used to," Tucker pointed out. He felt bad for Olivia, but he was glad the only person he had to deal with was Sergeant Draper, and Cole would probably just give him a congratulatory pat on the back.

"I just can't have them thinking every time you're involved with a case that it's somehow compromised."

"They won't," Ed assured her, "let your work, and mine, speak for itself."

"We're good police," Olivia boasted.

"Yes we are." Tucker drank more coffee and pushed what we left of his breakfast to the side of the plate. "So, what are you doing today?"

"Actually," Olivia replied, trying to sound mysterious, "You and I are doing something."

"Really…" Ed tried to not sound too excited.

"Lucy is coming to pick up Noah, then you and I are, well, I thought we could hang out at your place this afternoon," she cocked an eyebrow flirtatiously.

"Ahhhh, ok," Ed drawled, "it's supposed to rain today anyway, so it's not like there's anything to do _outside_."

"My thoughts exactly."

….

Olivia followed Ed into his apartment and as soon as she closed and locked the door Tucker pressed her up against it, kissing her intensely, probing her mouth with his tongue. Olivia dropped her bag and wriggled out of her coat, letting it fall to the floor in a heap. Tucker still held his keys in one hand. He tossed them towards the kitchen island where they landed and skidded the length of the granite countertop before they, too, fell to the floor.

"This was such a good idea," Ed gasped, his mouth still on hers.

Olivia, who, in addition to kissing back, had peeled off Ed's jacket and was now unbuttoning his powder blue oxford, managed a breathless, "absolutely." She slid her hands under Tucker's white t-shirt, pressing her fingers into his muscles, turned on by the feel of his chiseled physique.

He stopped kissing her long enough to pull her sweater over her head. That, too, joined the collection of items littering the parquet floor. A garment trail-jeans, belts, panties, boxer briefs, shoes, socks, her bra—led from the door to the bedroom where the entangled pair fell on Ed's plush mattress giggling like young lovers on their honeymoon.

Ed tried to mix up his lovemaking routine, but there was one part he never failed to repeat and that was to pause a few seconds to admire Olivia's gorgeousness. He knew this probably annoyed her and made her impatient, but he didn't care. Now that he was actually _with_ her, he didn't necessarily have to savor the view of her body, naked, lying seductively in front of him, but, again, he didn't care. For the rest of his life, he would remain awestruck whenever he saw her and especially when he made love to her.

He went back to work with his mouth, kissing and gently nipping at her neck, feeling her back arch with pleasure. He slowly and delicately moved down her body, teasing her a bit.

"Ed," she moaned as he made his way back up and resumed kissing her on the mouth.

In one motion, she flipped herself over, on top of him, taking control. She playfully pinned his arms over his head and smiled slyly at him, her brunette locks hanging down, brushing his face, and then lightly bit his ear, knowing how much that drove him crazy.

They jostled like this for a while, battling to be on top, kissing, touching, and exploring everywhere, lingering in spots they knew were especially erogenous. Finally, Tucker could no longer wait.

His intense, middle-of-sex, blue-eyed stare made her shudder with erotic delight. Tucker thrust more rapidly, roughly, wanting to hear her cry out for him in delight and satisfaction.

She did.

So motivating.

When he exploded inside of her Ed had what was very close to an out-of-body, hallucinatory experience. He was numb, dizzy, and delirious with happiness and indescribable emotion. "Oh, my God. Olivia. I love you," he managed to blurt out as he fell on her, sapped of energy, his voice thick, deep, and raspy, more so than usual. He peppered her face with a few more kisses before nestling his head under her chin. She ran her fingers across his back, still breathing hard, content, and the tiniest bit bothered that it had taken so long for her to find the absolutely perfect lover. She would forever be amazed that Ed Tucker could make her feel this way. It was a plot twist not even the savviest observer could have predicted. But it happened, and she was so happy.

"You're amazing," she said sweetly.

"You are," he volleyed back at her.

If it weren't for the blissful post-coital silence as they lay wrapped in one another's arms, the vibrating phone would have gone unanswered.

"Someone's phone."

"Mine is in my bag," Olivia said, "It's probably yours."

Ed left the bed and rummaged through the discarded clothing. He found the phone in his jeans pocket. He stared, stunned, at the message on the screen and wandered back to the bedroom.

His obvious shock startled Olivia. "Ed? What's wrong?"

He shook his head, "Nothing. Nothing. It's from Cole. They want me back at work tomorrow." He rolled back in bed and snuggled up next to her. She kissed his forehead.

"It's over," he declared, relieved. "It's finally over."

"Don't forget to bring a suit with you when we leave here later," Benson reminded him thoughtfully, also feeling as if an enormous weight had been lifted.

"I'm staying over tonight?" Ed asked out of courtesy. He was not disappointed.

"Well, yes," she teased, "I wouldn't want you to oversleep on your first day back. And I hear it's going to be a busy one, with that SVU Lieutenant coming in and all."

"Oh, yeah," Ed played along, "That cute brunette. I love her."

She kissed his head again and then again for good measure. "And she loves you."


	3. Chapter 3

**Note: I'm working with the theory that Dodds, Sr. is involved with the Manhattan Transfer corruption. Of course, I could be wrong, but I'll go back and fix inconsistencies after Unholiest Alliance if need be! Enjoy!**

 **Three.**

Tucker sat back in his chair, hands clasped in front of him. It felt good to have his Glock and badge back; he had felt so unnervingly light and unstable without those accoutrements. Cole Draper had been in and out of the office during Tucker's suspension, but everything looked undisturbed. Tucker hadn't bothered to pack his personal items; he felt doing so was a sign of defeat, and Tucker was not one who enjoyed losing. He was defiant. A fighter. Strong. Principled.

A good man.

He assessed the past several weeks, beginning with that awful day when Cole informed him that _he_ had become the target of his own investigation. Tucker had his share of real and metaphorical gut punches over the years, but he could not recall a blow that felt worse than when Group 1 informed him he was being investigated for corruption, sex trafficking, and murder. Making matters worse, Olivia was apparently going down with him. Tucker had never excelled at handling his own crises. He was very good at creating them for other cops, and when the tables turned, he very nearly crumbled. But Benson needed him.

Her devastation manifested itself at first as anger, then as embarrassment when she traded her blazers and slacks for the standard-issue NYPD Community Affairs polo shirt. The two of them spent the first week of her transfer and his suspension on one of their couches with a bottle of something, drinking too much, racking their brains trying to untangle the threads of the case, and plotting revenge. Tucker then walked Olivia back from the alcohol-induced abyss when she accused herself of being a terrible mother, of ignoring Noah, and of being so self-involved that she actually forgot, one time, to give him dinner. It was only Ed's late-night Chinese food craving that made her realize the unforgivable oversight.

"We've probably had enough of the self-destruction, huh?" He had suggested to her that night. After that, their booze-filled sessions ended, but their misery did not abate. Of course, the silver lining was that in such a messy situation, each knew the other was the only person to be trusted, so they turned inward, isolated themselves, and, though individually broken, ended up strengthening their relationship.

"Tucker?"

"Yeah, Cole, come in," Tucker would finish the retrospection later. "What's going on?"

"Benson and Carisi are on their way up," Sergeant Draper cocked his head and smirked a little, "Ready?"

"Yeah, I'll be in the conference room in a minute."

"Have you had a chance to go over the case? Or…"

Tucker knew what Cole was thinking. _He figures I know about it already._

"I flipped through their jackets this morning," Tucker chose to not try to guess what Cole was after and instead repeated to him exactly what he had told Benson at her apartment last week. He was familiar with both cops, but there was nothing in either of their pasts to suggest they were capable of something this nefarious.

"It's good to have you back, Captain," Cole was still smirking.

"Ok, what?" Ed asked, unsuccessfully trying to hold back a grin.

Cole looked around the office, "Do you have any pictures of her in here yet?" He joked.

"No…no, not yet," Ed played along, "but soon. I'll let you know."

"Good deal," Cole cracked. "It really is good to have you back."

"You have no idea," Tucker muttered.

….

Benson and Tucker had been seeing one another in some fashion for longer than anyone realized, so they were extremely well-skilled in switching between their personal and professional lives. They knew this, but nobody else did, so there was the added pressure of being under a new, very powerful microscope when, in reality, they had already drawn the line and mastered the most controversial and potentially thorny part of their relationship. The only way to rid their respective squads of any doubt was to jump right in as if nothing happened, but Ed was starting to see some merit in Olivia's proposal to simply take everyone out for drinks and tell them to get the hell over it.

Tucker and Draper were seated at the oval conference table when Benson and Carisi arrived. Carisi was Olivia's safest bet for normalcy at the moment. Why complicate matters by bringing Fin, Dodds, or Rollins?

"Lieutenant," Cole smiled cordially, stood, and shook Olivia's hand, "good to see you again."

She smiled graciously, "Nice to see you too." She turned to Ed, "Tucker," She greeted him with a slight nod. A little bit awkward but not too bad. Ed was soon shaking Carisi's hand, so the moment passed quickly.

"So," Cole began, "what do you have for us?"

"We don't have much yet," Carisi answered, "But it's not looking good." He explained the results of the phone dump and then added, "And we went back through both boys' phones. A week before they went missing? Multiple calls and texts back and forth between both boys and both cops."

"And before that week?" Tucker inquired.

"Nothing." Carisi slid a folder over to the IAB investigators, "You'll see. Jarvis and James went missing on a Thursday night. The weekend before, that's when it started."

Olivia knew it was time for her to do some talking, "They were at a tournament in Philadelphia that Saturday," she said, "something must have happened."

Tucker and Cole looked at one another. "You don't have anything else?" Cole asked. "The texts? Are they incriminating?"

"Not really," Carisi admitted, "but they're cops. They would know better."

Tucker shook his head, "I don't know if it's enough for a warrant for their phones."

Cole agreed, "Find something else," he directed.

"Keep digging," Tucker nodded, "If we go at them now and they have something to hide, it'll tip them off."

"Ok." Carisi said, "Then give this case back to the two-eight? This isn't really an SVU case."

"It is now," Cole declared. "Use the guys at the two-eight, but SVU stays on. Keep them in the loop, but this is your case, Lieutenant Benson."

Olivia nodded her acceptance. When she looked up, she noticed Tucker gazing at her curiously. _I know I haven't said much. This is too weird. Everyone knows. Everyone is waiting for one of us to screw up._

"We'll keep you posted," Olivia said with finality, in a hurry to get out of there. She turned to Carisi, "Let's go."

Tucker stopped them, "Lieutenant, actually, do you have a few minutes?"

Olivia glanced from Carisi then to Draper, who was already on his way out of the room. She couldn't say no, but _what the hell, Ed?_

"I'll wait for you downstairs, Lieutenant," Carisi told her nonchalantly, kindly, with his usual buoyancy.

"Olivia, what's the matter?" Tucker appeared genuinely concerned. He looked at her like he did the time he wished her luck after the Lewis case.

"I don't know if I can do this."

"What?"

"Every time we're on a case now we're going to be second-guessed, judged. And then you ask me to stay? What's Carisi thinking we're _doing_?"

"I don't know, maybe you should ask him, he seemed normal to me," Tucker was trying not to sound like a smart ass, but he couldn't help it. He immediately felt guilty. "Hey," he held her shoulders firmly, keeping her at arm's length, "just one case. That's all it will take. You'll feel better after this one. If you stop being the Lieutenant Benson everyone knows, _that's_ when people will start talking. The Lieutenant _I know_ would never come down to IAB just to say two sentences."

He was right, but wrong about the statistics. "I said more than two."

He cocked his head, "I think it was two," he teased. "Maybe one and a half actually."

She screwed up her face, feigning annoyance, "I'll see you later."

"Have a good day, Lieutenant," he bid her farewell in his best IAB voice.

Olivia smiled as she walked to the elevators. She admitted she was jealous of how easily Ed walked back in, unruffled by a few weeks' suspension, and how could he be so confident? If the shoe were on the other foot, both he and she would be skeptical of two cops' abilities to do their jobs credibly if they were involved with one another. Or maybe his implication was right. Maybe she was the only one with the problem.

….

Luckily, Dr. Lindstrom had an opening that afternoon. Prior to the scandal and her transfer, she cut her sessions to once a month, but she was now back to once a week, or in the case of this particular week, _twice_ a week.

She usually chose one of his armchairs, but today she collapsed on the couch, head on the armrest, legs splayed in front of her, getting the complete shrink experience.

She first went on a rant about her squad who seemed to be distant and standoffish at the precinct. The camaraderie was gone. Rollins was too sanctimonious. Carisi was too nice. Fin pissed her off because if he'd just taken the damn sergeant's exam when she asked him to, then Dodds wouldn't have been assigned to SVU and his corrupt-to-the-core father would not have been so quick to jettison her so his son could climb the NYPD ranks.

Then it was Ed's turn. How could he just flip the switch like that, saunter back in to IAB, be all buddy-buddy with his partner, interview her and Carisi like the good old days? And then to ask to see her after, like they were going to go back to his office for a quickie? She was glad she hadn't taken Rollins or even Fin. If Dodds would have been with her, she hoped Ed would have had the sense to just let her leave. But who knows? For him, everything was perfect. It was like he just pressed "play" after pausing a movie for a few seconds.

"Fuck." Olivia rarely used that word, but she was beyond exasperated.

Dr. Lindstrom raised an eyebrow, "Olivia, why do you think you're reacting this way?"

"I don't _know_ , that's why I'm here," she snapped.

"You said you and Ed agreed not to apologize to anyone. Why?"

"There is nothing to apologize for. We didn't do anything wrong."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you disclose your relationship with Ed sooner?"

"I don't know," she replied, "it got serious really fast," she rubbed her temples and closed her eyes.

"And? Why else?"

She knew what he was getting at. She was afraid of her squad's reaction. As long as they disclosed, there was no problem as far as 1PP was concerned, but she didn't know how her team would react, particularly Fin and Rollins. And Barba. She had imagined all of them cringing, slack-jawed, wondering why in the world she would choose Tucker of all people. And then she'd have to explain why she chose Tucker, and then it would get too personal, and then…whenever he came around she would get those looks, they would snicker amongst themselves, look at each other in astonishment. _Tucker?_

 _If they only knew._

"Olivia," he coaxed, "Just get it out. Are you embarrassed? Being with Ed?"

"Of course not."

"Then why not _be_ _with him_? You let him into your life already, maybe open the door a little more. Why pretend it's still a secret?"

"It was never a secret," she grumbled, "we were _out_ , dinner, drinks, we even went to a movie once, it wasn't like we were hiding."

"Then why didn't you go into that bar on Valentine's Day? The one you told me about. When you saw the chief?"

 _Busted. Good one, Lindstrom._

Conceding defeat, she said nothing.

Dr. Lindstrom changed course. "Is it possible you have, right now, everything you want? Does that make you uneasy?"

Olivia pondered the questions for a few minutes. What a whirlwind the last twenty-four hours had been. It was just about this time yesterday that she and Ed left his apartment. He carried a freshly dry cleaned suit, shirt, and tie. He had everything else he needed at her place; during their dark week of drinking and loathing everyone on the planet, he'd purchased a second toothbrush and razor and kept bringing over extra sets of clothing without taking them back home. Olivia eventually sent his laundry with hers. It now sat, perfectly folded, in a plastic bag in a corner of her bedroom. She wasn't quite to the point of making room for his things in her closet or bureau just yet.

They picked up tacos and ate dinner with Noah in front of the television. Ed sipped a beer. Olivia poured a glass of wine, but she didn't drink much of it. She was happy cuddled up with Ed on the couch under a blanket, simultaneously watching Jeopardy and Noah, who was diligently removing every toy from his toy box, apparently searching for something in particular.

"Last night," Olivia finally piped up, "Last night we were in my living room," her voice started shaking, and she swallowed hard, trying to postpone the tears, "Ed and I were on the couch, and Noah was playing on the floor. He was throwing things around, looking for something. Like, he was _really_ wanting to find it."

"What was he looking for?"

The tears ran down her cheeks now, but she was smiling recalling the sweet moment, "A book. _A Day at the Police Station._ Ed bought it for him last week," Olivia reached for a tissue, "Noah brought the book over to us, and, well, he doesn't talk much, we're working on it, but he said," her voice was really wavering now, she could hardly get the words out, "he said 'Tuck. Tuck. Read. Please.' But, you know, he says 'peas' instead of 'please.' And then he climbed up with us so Ed could read it."

Dr. Lindstrom smiled, "Olivia, it is _time to let go_. Let go of this idea that you do not deserve to be happy. It is time to accept contentment in your life."

Sitting up now, Olivia dabbed at her eyes, sniffed, and pulled herself back together.

"Go home and enjoy the people you love," Dr. Lindstrom said, "and be unapologetic about accepting the love they give you."

…

Olivia almost physically ran into Lucy as the babysitter left the building on her way to her Monday night class at Hudson University.

"Hey, Olivia!" She said brightly.

Olivia returned Lucy's warm grin, "Hey…I'm sorry I'm a little late today."

"Oh, no problem. My class doesn't start for another hour. Plenty of time to get coffee and go over my notes."

"Great."

"It was good to see Captain Tucker in a suit again," Lucy remarked kindly. Not even the babysitter had been able to avoid being sucked into Ed and Olivia's temporary misery.

"I know," Olivia agreed, relieved after all, "It was a tough stretch."

Lucy oozed with cheer, "Well! All over now!"

"Yes, the suits are back," Olivia announced.

Lucy chuckled, "I'll see you tomorrow. Day care pick-up right?"

"Right."

….

Ed, still in his navy suit, light blue shirt, and striped tie sat on the couch. Noah was on his lap. He held Tucker's badge, turning it over and over in his little hands, examining it closely.

She went over to greet them without removing her shoes or her coat.

"Hello, my love," she sang the words to Noah and kissed him on the head and the cheek. "Whatcha got?" Noah held out the badge for her to see.

"Tuck's badge?"

He nodded.

"Thank you for relieving Lucy," she caressed Ed's face. When she bent down to kiss him, he cupped his hand around the back of her thigh, sending an exhilarating shiver up her spine. "How was the rest of your day?

"Good," Ed reported, "After you left, Cole and I went out to lunch, which lasted two hours, by the time we got back, the day was almost over."

"Must be nice," she joked. She removed her coat and boots and sat next to him. "You were right. About today. I was the only one in the room with a problem."

"That's not what I said."

"But that _was_ your point."

"Maybe," he conceded. "I don't want to pressure you. It's easier for me, I'm sorry to say. I wouldn't want to have to explain us to your squad after…after all…all the animosity," he forced a laugh, "I win a lot more points admitting I'm seeing Olivia Benson than you win saying you're with Ed Tucker."

Olivia laughed. It was not forced. It was a genuine and rarely used Olivia Benson laugh, and Ed Tucker made it happen. Again, he surprised her with his insight…and humor? Where did _that_ come from?

Tucker shifted Noah from his lap to hers. "I have to go. I'm meeting Cole to watch the ballgame. It's opening day."

"Yankees?"

"No, they played this afternoon, which is why lunch lasted two hours. Cole's a Dodgers fan, they're on tonight." He leaned in for a kiss. She held Noah with one arm and curled her other hand around the back of Tucker's head flirtatiously, momentarily preventing him from pulling away. "I'll get a hold of you after."

"Ok."

Ed snapped his fingers, a thought popped into his head just then, "Do you want me to take those clothes home?"

Olivia looked at him adoringly. _Those eyes._ "No," she answered softly, "no, I don't."

He nodded and shot her a mischievous grin. "Bye."

"Bye."

Ed's hand was on the doorknob when he heard Noah's toddler voice drift from the living room, "Bye, Tuck!"

"Bye bud!" He called back.

Tucker smiled all the way to the bar.


	4. Chapter 4

**Four.**

"Hey, Liv," Fin sidled up to the bar next to Olivia who sat perched on a stool. She had been nursing a bourbon-the glass and her phone were in front of her. Preferring to stand, Fin slid aside the seat she'd reserved for him.

"Hey," she spoke graciously, "Thanks for coming."

"Not a problem," he sounded indifferent. Fin waved over the bartender and ordered a beer. "What'd IAB say about Cartwright and Dunmore?" He asked, lowering his voice when he said the officers' names. This wasn't a cop bar, but one never knew.

Olivia noticed he didn't say "Tucker," but he may not have realized Tucker was back. "They don't think we have enough to open an investigation. _Yet_."

Fin accepted the decision, "They're probably right."

"I don't know," she countered, "Those calls and texts all of a sudden? And right after they were out of town with the lacrosse team? Something's up."

"You think they're nervous about going after cops again?"

She took a sip. The bourbon burned her throat. "I hope not. That's their _job._ They're keeping us on the case."

"Well aren't we lucky," Fun muttered sarcastically, staring straight ahead at the old license plates tacked to the bar's paneled walls.

Olivia turned to completely face him and force him to look her in the eyes, "Listen, I didn't ask you here to talk about the case."

"I figured."

 _Look at me, dammit._

Of all the SVU squad members, Tucker had given Fin the least trouble. Still, she and Fin had worked together a long time, and he experienced the agony IAB investigations caused her, Elliot, Cragen, Cassidy, and Rollins. Fin hated Tucker just as much as everyone else, and Olivia knew it was unfair to tell him to get over it and move on like she had done with Rollins and Carisi.

"Fin," she tried her best to sound sincere, "I want you to know…I didn't intend to…to have it come out this way. I thought it was better to keep things under wraps. I was wrong."

"How long?" He asked, finally meeting her eyes. He appeared genuinely hurt.

Olivia pressed her lips together. Hard. "We started meeting for drinks last year. But, in the past few months…it became something else."

"Liv, you didn't do anything wrong," Fin said softly, "but I wish you would have told at least one of us. You know we support you no matter what."

She hadn't expected Fin to shed the tough-guy armor so easily, and his forgiving, demeanor made her feel guilty when she had planned to be unapologetic and maybe a bit stubborn.

"No matter what," she parroted, almost in a whisper.

He nudged her playfully, " _Tucker_?" He grimaced in exaggerated disgust, teasing her, and lightening the mood. "Wait 'til your old partners find out."

"It will be interesting," Olivia acknowledged.

"Seriously, Liv, I'm glad you're happy," he gave her a little hug and then screwed up his face, "is that why he's calmed down so much with us?"

"Maybe."

He shrugged, "Maybe you shoulda been involved with him sooner."

Olivia just smiled at him, appreciating the fact that he hadn't lost his sense of humor with her.

Fin returned to detective mode, "So over a year, you've been seeing each other and working together. Nobody suspected anything. Why'd they transfer you then?"

"A combination of Dodds and…a legitimate concern about bias."

"Barba?"

"He had to let 1PP know," Olivia admitted both to Fin and to herself, "He couldn't keep it from the investigation. But, I probably should have disclosed earlier, maybe after the Abraham case. It will be a long time before we get back to where we were, back to that comfort level."

Fin took a long drink and swallowed hard, "I'm gonna tell you something, and you can take it or leave it. But at least think about it."

"Ok."

"It's not like we've all come together to talk about you and Tucker, but I can see why Barba's upset and why things are a little weird back at the house."

Olivia raised her eyebrows, not sure if she wanted to hear what Fin was about to say.

"Liv, everyone in the squad trusts you, probably trusts you the most of anyone in NYPD. It hurts knowing that you don't reciprocate that trust."

Annoyed yet calm, Olivia retorted, "I get it. But this wasn't about trust, Fin. Are you honestly telling me the squad would have just accepted Tucker and I were together and continue on as usual?"

"No, it still woulda been awkward, but…at least easier to accept. Now, don't get me wrong, I still can't believe it's Tucker, but you pushed us away when we're your friends, we could've been your allies." He noticed her jaw clench, "I don't want to upset you," he put a reassuring hand on hers, "but it _is_ about trust. If you trust Tucker, I trust your judgement. You can't help who you love." Fin was having a _really_ hard time with the whole idea.

"Thanks," Olivia huffed sarcastically.

Fin took a deep breath, "We're good, Liv. We're good." He finished his beer and ordered another round for the two of them. The drinks came, and he offered a toast, "To you being back." They clinked glasses, drank, and then Fin just had to say it one more time, " _Tucker_?"

Olivia laughed, "Maybe someday you'll get it."

…

The next morning the entire SVU squad stood in front of the large white board trying to decide where to take the investigation. They were under enormous pressure to announce a lead, or even a minor development, but they had nothing but two dead fourteen-year-old boys and a duffle bag full of lacrosse gear.

"Ok," Benson said, "let's look at the families. James and Jarvis lived in one of the most violent places in Manhattan. Do they have gang ties?"

"Both moms said no," Fin answered.

"Other relatives?"

"I talked to both moms. Both young single parents, and mostly women in the families."

"The only thing we got from interviewing their friends and teammates was that they smoked weed every once in a while," Rollins added.

"Where's the list of their teammates?"

Carisi rifled through a folder, pulled out a paper, and gave it to Benson, "Here you go, Lieutenant."

Benson scanned the list and noticed an unchecked name. "What about this one? Kelvin Phillips?"

"He left the team," Dodds informed her, "boys didn't give a reason."

Olivia kept reading through the list. Kelvin Phillips was the only one who was not interviewed. _Sloppy work, Dodds_. "How long ago?"

"About a month."

"Fin, Rollins, go up to Harlem and talk to Kelvin. That's the only loose end we have right now."

"Dodds, Carisi, let's go back over everything—witness statements, the family, friends, everything. Maybe we missed something."

…..

Later that night, Olivia found Tucker waiting for her at the bar of a neighborhood bistro. The restaurant was a very un-Tucker-like place. There were no televisions; the only entertainment was a three-piece band. The space was open and airy, and the crepe chandeliers draped everything and everyone in a dim reddish hue. The bistro was situated on a busy corner, and both street-facing walls were covered in plate glass. A few weeks ago, they would have chosen a less conspicuous spot.

Ed was at the bar when she arrived, two glasses of red wine in front of him. He wore khakis and a simple black oxford open at the neck. Olivia waved aside the host and made a beeline towards Ed who stood and wrapped her in his arms. "Hi there," he held her away from him for a second as if he hadn't seen her in years.

She smiled, unable to hide the affection in her eyes, not that she wanted to hide it. "Hey."

He pulled her in for a kiss and lingered there for a few seconds. He let his hands slide from the middle of her back down to her hips and felt her quiver ever so slightly. Having her so close sent little flutters of arousal shooting through his body. He took a deep breath. Even after a full day he caught a faint whiff of whatever it was she used on her hair, kissed her once more, and then handed her the glass of wine.

"I went for a Chianti," he sounded hopeful, "that alright?"

 _He ordered a drink for her?_ How adorable. "Of course. Thank you."

She started to get comfortable on the plush bar chair, but Ed stopped her. "I got us a table…for a change."

On cue, the host came over. "Mr. Tucker? Do you want to be seated now?"

Olivia thought Tucker's name with "Mister" in front of it sounded weird. She and Tucker followed the waiter to a table for two that looked out over Amsterdam Avenue. The street was bustling with activity. Smartly dressed people rushed by, the indifferent expression ubiquitous to all New Yorkers plastered across their faces, cab drivers blared their horns at jaywalking pedestrians, and the neighborhood's outdoor patios swelled with people enjoying the unusually warm April evening.

"This is _so_ nice," Olivia gushed, "Thank you for agreeing to try this place."

Tucker looked around, assessing the ambience, and tried to sound slightly put out by being removed from his comfort zone, "I pick the place next time," he teased good-naturedly.

"Deal," she agreed.

Ed wasn't _that_ unhappy, plus, the lighting enhanced the sparkle in Olivia's brown eyes and the enthusiasm in her slightly flushed cheeks. Her happiness radiated outward. He liked to think it was because of him, but it was probably because they were finally sitting down to a carefree romantic dinner at a table situated next to a window. So, it was _sort of_ because of him. He'd take it.

"Do you like the music?" He asked.

Olivia hadn't been listening closely, so she took a few seconds to concentrate on the sounds coming from the small, slightly elevated stage in the opposite corner. There was a keyboardist who also served as the lead vocalist and the two other members played the bass guitar and a small drum set. They alternated between standards and slower versions of modern pop songs. Olivia thought it added to the hip, classy ambiance. "I do," she answered, suspecting Ed felt just the opposite, "how about you?"

He surprised her, "Not bad."

"You're lying," Olivia kidded him.

"Well, I'm not going to ask them for an autograph or anything," he admitted, "but it works for this place."

"Well, I know you like U2," Olivia remembered him playing it the day Noah got hurt at the park, "Are they your favorite?"

"Either them or Springsteen. Or the Stones."

"Did you see Springsteen at the Garden in January?"

Ed shook his head regretfully, "No. I waited too long to get tickets. I heard it was a good show, though."

Olivia remembered reading that Springsteen's tour celebrating the 35th Anniversary of _The River_ was coming back to New York, to Brooklyn, later on in the month. She didn't mention it to Ed, but she did make a mental note to try and somehow get tickets.

"I haven't been to a concert in years," Olivia said, "I did go to the Blue Note Jazz Festival in the park last summer."

Ed's eyes widened, "You did? I was there with Brooke. She's the jazz fan in the family."

"Maybe we can check the calendar and go again with her this year."

He found it endearing that Olivia suggested they do something so, well, _normal_ , and that she wanted to include his daughter. He didn't see his girls much, especially Sarah who lived in Philadelphia, but he kept in regular contact with them and had talked about Olivia more than once. He had never mentioned a romantic interest to them before now, so he hoped his daughters got the message that he was very serious about her. It was also comforting to hear Olivia anticipate an event occurring months down the road. With the exception of all things Noah-related, he never heard her really plan ahead for anything other than the immediate future.

"I'm sure she'd like that," Ed affirmed, "and so would I." Out of the corner of his eye, Tucker noticed two couples swaying in one another's arms on the small dance floor adjacent to the stage.

He stood up suddenly and held out his hand. Olivia stared up at him, perplexed.

"Dance with me."

Olivia did not protest. She placed her hand in his and allowed herself to be led to the dance floor. Ed disregarded traditional technique and slid his arms around her waist, again pulling her close and, for the second time that evening, experienced the addictive thrill of having her body pressed against his.

At first, Olivia wrapped her arms around Ed's neck and rested her head against his shoulder. She felt safe and soaked up the comforting sensation of his arms around her. He kissed her forehead, and she tilted her head back, silently requesting something a little more intimate. Ed met her lips carefully, tenderly, and gazed at her lovingly. She lightly stroked the nape of his neck with her fingertips and kissed him again, this time opening her mouth a little, inviting an even more passionate kiss, lost in the romance of the moment. The band ended one song and immediately began another, a cover of a John Mayer song.

 _You love, who you love_

 _Who you love_

 _You love, who you love_

 _Who you love_

Ed tightened his hold on her, and she returned her head to his shoulder. For the first time, an unfamiliar but welcome sense of optimism flooded Olivia's mind, body, and soul.

Even the band was cooperating.

…

A combination of moonlight and streetlight cast a grayish blue illumination over Ed and Olivia as they lay tangled in covers, heads on the same pillow, eyes fixated on one another. As usual, Ed hadn't quite had his fill of her, and he ran his fingers over her smooth back in a figure-eight pattern.

"Something very important happened tonight, Olivia." Even in the dimly lit room she could see his blue eyes still blazing with infatuation for her.

"What's that?" She asked, expecting him to tease her with some obscure detail about their eclectically-prepared dinner or their protracted session on the dance floor.

"We managed to go a whole night without talking about work."

Olivia raised her eyebrows in genuine astonishment then smiled as she ran a hand across Ed's cheek, "See? I _knew_ trying a new place was a good idea."

Feeling sleepy, she turned and burrowed herself closer to Ed, her back against his chest, his arm now draped across her bare belly.

"But remember," he whispered insistently, "I pick next time."

She couldn't be sure, but it felt like she fell asleep smiling.


	5. Chapter 5

_Notes: I'm still going with the theory Dodds, Sr. is somehow connected to the church scandal. Of course, I may have to rework this after next week. Also, forgive me if the subplot about the two missing boys is a little rudimentary…I'm a lover not a crime writer! Enjoy!_

 **Five.**

Tucker sat behind his desk sipping coffee. He had plenty of work to do, but the normally industrious IAB Captain didn't feel like working at that particular moment. It was not exactly the proper attitude for a man recently reinstated to a position he loved, but there were extenuating circumstances.

Ed was in love.

It wasn't just Olivia, either. Ed had fallen hard for the entire package—Olivia, Noah, waking up next to her, their Saturday and sometimes Sunday morning lazy breakfasts, and the perfectly uneventful mornings like the one that had just passed.

Tucker had woken early, made himself a cup of coffee, and returned to bed to scan the headlines on Olivia's iPad. He wanted to accidentally-on-purpose rouse her and possibly sneak in another round of lovemaking before work, but she was sleeping too peacefully. He didn't have the heart to disturb her.

One more of his clean suits was draped over an easy chair in the corner. Ever since the church scandal and their respective punishments, he had been spending less and less time at his apartment. They were nowhere near moving in together, but he couldn't help but think about the future possibility of a combined Benson-Tucker household. For the time being though, he would have to grab more clothes.

Olivia stirred just as Ed was thinking about waking her. She was not known to arrive at the precinct unnecessarily early, but he knew she wouldn't want to oversleep with this case looming over SVU's heads.

"Morning," She rasped, eyes still closed.

Ed put the coffee and iPad down, gripped her under the arms, and dragged her to him so her back was against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck, her ear, gently biting the lobe, and, finally, her cheek.

"Captain Tucker," she coyly admonished him, "I'm sorry but I don't think I have time for this right now."

"I know you don't," he agreed, albeit regretfully. "You better get ready." Contrary to his words, Ed still held her firmly.

She tried to wrestle out of his grip. " _Ed, come on_ , let me go."

"Go ahead. I'm not stopping you," he joked.

"Ok, I really don't want our next meeting together taking place at One PP where we'll have to explain why I was late to work when there was a major break in the case."

"One look at you and the new chief would understand."

She giggled and fell limp against him, "Ok, ok, what do I have to do to get out of here?"

"Kiss me." She leaned back and kissed him hard on the lips, smashing her face into his. He laughed, her mouth still on his, "You are _aggressive_ , Lieutenant."

"I have to be," she sassed. "Now, please, I need to shower and get Noah up and…are you working from home or something today?"

"No, no, I'll get there early enough. Get in the shower. I'll get Noah."

Olivia still hesitated to accept Ed's help with her son. Deep down she harbored the anxiety that it was burdensome for him and he was just offering to be nice and that someday he'd look around, throw his hands up, sick of it, and leave. But there was no time to talk about that now. She looked at the clock on her nightstand. Almost 7:15. Not too bad, but she had to move.

"You know you don't have to do that," she reminded him, pinching his chin gently with her thumb and index finger.

"I know, but I _am_ doing it and I want to, so _get in the shower,"_ he commanded through clenched teeth, giving her a friendly shove.

"Ok, ok."

Ed fetched Noah, got him changed and dressed, and plopped him in the high chair. "Juice, Tuck?"

"On it, bud." Tucker placed Noah's juice cup and a handful of Cheerios on the tray. Noah happily ate his breakfast and beamed at his mother when she emerged clad in a t-shirt with a towel wrapped around her wet hair.

"Hi sweetheart," she said brightly and kissed the top of his head, "Good morning! Tuck got you all ready to go?"

Noah nodded.

"I'm done in there," she told Tucker. "Go ahead."

Ed was clean, dressed, and ready in less than thirty minutes. He walked out of the bedroom in his freshly pressed suit and shirt, tie expertly knotted, badge on his waist, and he moved with the can't-touch-this IAB swagger that was unmistakably his.

Noah pointed at him. "Tuck police!" He exclaimed. "Get bad guys!"

Apparently unconcerned with Cheerios or sticky apple juice fingers soiling his clothes, Tucker hoisted Noah out of the high chair. "That's right," he said seriously.

"Ready?" Olivia asked.

The gold edges of her badge were extra prominent against her all black attire—blouse, blazer, and pants.

"Doesn't mommy look good?" Ed asked Noah.

"Pretty," he replied.

"You two make a girl blush. Now, let's go."

She hustled Noah into his jacket and grabbed her own trench coat. The three of them hit the street walking in the same direction until Olivia had to veer off to drop Noah at day care.

"Do you want me to drive you to the precinct?" He offered.

"No, go ahead, I'll walk. See you later?"

"Yeah." She turned to walk away but Ed grabbed her by the elbow. "Bye," he said softly. Tucker gave her an innocent kiss, but he let his bottom lip linger on hers for a split second and met her eyes with his.

The whole good-bye kiss routine of his made Olivia feel like she should be in a hotel room rather than on the streets of New York. "Again, you make a girl blush," she repeated, actually blushing. "Say good bye to Tucker, Noah."

"Bye, Tuck!"

Ed watched as Olivia led her son down the street by the hand.

He took another drink of the now-lukewarm coffee, made a face, and slid it to the corner of his desk. Trying to think about something else, he picked up a stack of thick manila folders, officers' jackets, and opened the first one gingerly. Ed dealt with the worst of the worst—police officers sworn to uphold the law and protect the public who, for whatever reason, had gone astray and broken the law. The three characters whose careers were summarized on paper in front of him were definitely going down. Tucker studied their pictures—all young guys. Probably had families. They stood to lose everything, pensions, reputations, self-respect, at their hearings later on this week.

"Tucker?" Cole came in.

"Hey, Cole."

"SVU is on the phone."

Ed pressed the blinking red light on his console, picked up the phone, pressed the "speaker" button, and put the handset back down. "This is Tucker and Sergeant Draper."

"Hey," It was Olivia's voice, sounding tinny and distant. She was on speaker, too. "I think we may have something. Fin just let me hear the audio from Kelvin Phillips' interview this morning."

"Kelvin Phillips?" Tucker asked.

"Yes, he's the one boy we didn't interview because he quit the team a month ago. Fin finally caught up with him and his mother before school this morning. He says Jarvis and James were caught with marijuana right before their Pennsylvania tournament. By Cartwright."

"Pot. How much?" Draper asked.

Fin answered, "Probably not a whole lot, but Kelvin told me, after his mother left the room, that everyone knew they could get dime bags from Jarvis or James. These two weren't angels."

"Still," Tucker protested, "It's not enough for warrants. And if you press those two cops on this, they'll lawyer up."

"Lieutenant!"

Draper and Tucker looked at one another. The voice was Carisi's and the urgency was obvious. They struggled to hear the ensuing conversation among the SVU squad members, then the other line fell silent.

"Hello?" Ed said.

"Tucker, you may want to see this. Carisi has been taking a closer look at the street cams and he widened the area. We might just have what we need."

"We'll be there within the hour."

….

Carisi slid the iPad in front of Tucker and Draper. "We were looking for someone _following_ them," he pointed out. "No dice. But hundreds of cams. So, I expanded the area, started earlier, and whaddya know? Right there," Carisi flicked the screen with his fingernail. "Dusk. Two unis heading into the park at Ninety-sixth."

"Has that been sent to TARU?" Draper asked.

"Yes, I had them rush it," Benson reported.

Carisi shook his head and pulled the officers' photographs from a folder, "But look! It's them." He was right. The high resolution video clearly had recorded Cartwright and Dunmore.

Tucker swallowed. "Get warrants for their phones and financials. I'll notify their Captain."

Olivia did not look confident. "Hold on a second, guys," Olivia interrupted, "Motive? All we have are the calls and texts, and there is nothing incriminating in the texts."

"But this video…" Carisi trailed off.

"Liv," Fin said softly, "There's something there. We need their phones. We know they called the boys. We know they got busted for pot. The two cops didn't tell us that. We need to know if they called and texted each other and if they're on the take somehow"

Olivia pressed her lips together, thinking. "We need to re-interview the lacrosse team. One more time. Maybe one of them held something back. And get the dogs to their homes and their lockers at school. We need an air tight case here, and right now we don't have it. They lawyer up, we may never get it."

Rollins chimed in, "We can go back up to the school, get Narcotics up there, too."

"Look," Tucker said firmly, "This is more than a coincidence now. We have calls from the cops to the boys? Timeline match?"

Rollins read from her notes, "Two calls from Cartwright to James and one from Dunmore to Jarvis. That was before the boys were caught on camera and after their practice ended that night. The officers would have been in the park if that's them." She bobbed her head towards the iPad.

"It's _them_ ," Carisi assured, again. He was starting to get a little annoyed.

"Lieutenant," Tucker almost used "Olivia" but he caught himself in time, "It's your call, but IAB has enough to bring them in for an interview."

Olivia looked at him hopefully, "Can IAB wait a few hours?"

Tucker and Cole nodded simultaneously.

"Fin, call Narcotics, but not Dunmore's division, and get a dog up there today. First their apartments, parents have already consented to searches, then the school. Keep it on the down low; no radio. I'll go with you. Rollins and Carisi, call the school and set up another session with the kids. Press them about the cops. And the drugs. Remember, you're their allies not the enemies. They'll talk."

The two detectives looked skeptical, but they nodded in agreement and left.

Fin was already on the phone with the K9 Team.

Olivia picked up the iPad and the folders and tried to avoid Ed's eyes because she knew he would be scowling, displeased with her hesitation.

"Keep us in the loop, Lieutenant," Draper said courteously and turned to leave.

Olivia headed towards her office and brushed past Ed, glancing at him warily.

 _Uh-oh. That stare. IAB Ed. Set jaw. Red cheeks. Intense._

But then his face suddenly softened. "So let us know either way, Lieutenant. We can get the warrants expedited."

She knew him too well to fool herself into thinking he wasn't disappointed with her, but he suppressed it, and she was grateful. "Will do," she said breezily.

After they left she paused for a moment behind her desk, gripped the edges, and took a deep breath.

"You rea—" Fin stopped when he saw her in apparent distress. "Liv? Are you ok?" He walked over to her, a look of deep concern on his face.

She lifted her head, let out the breath, and felt a wave of calm envelop her body. "Yes. I think…" she mused curiously, "I think I may have just had a breakthrough." Fin looked confused. She continued, "Was it ok? In there with Tucker?"

Now he understood. "I didn't even think about it," he acknowledged, somewhat astonished at his own realization that there had been no awkwardness.

Olivia smiled. "Let's go."

….

Tucker and Draper had an early lunch at a hole-in-the-wall deli on their way downtown. Perched on ancient-looking stools, they hunched over sandwiches, pastrami for Ed and chicken salad for Cole, and made small talk.

"You're checking your phone a _lot_ ," Cole commented.

Tucker had placed his phone, screen up, on the counter which was unusual. He smirked at Cole. "We need to talk to those cops," Tucker muttered, "I'm not sure the Lieutenant made the right move."

"The more juice we have the better. A few hours won't make a difference, especially if SVU doesn't talk to them. The boys' funerals were yesterday. They probably think it's over."

Ed considered the thought and furrowed his brow, "I disagree. But the boss has spoken."

Cole snickered. "The _boss_ ," he joked. "I'm glad you know what's up, Tucker. Can't argue with the boss." Cole was giggling like a teenage girl now, happy for his partner but amused that he gave in to Benson's reasoning so easily.

Tucker gave him a friendly sneer.

"She's mellowed you man," Cole slapped him on the back.

Ed shrugged. "Looks like it," he resigned himself to the good-natured ribbing. _At least she was back to the old Benson,_ he thought. Tucker pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and laid it on the counter. "Let's just take a run up to the two-eight and sniff around a little bit," he suggested.

"That's not a good idea, Tucker. Let SVU work. If we need to sweat Cartwright and Dunmore, we will."

"Fine."

 _First Olivia and now Cole? Was his assessment of the situation so completely off base?_

Tucker chuckled to himself. _Mellowing_ was an understatement.

…

Carisi was very good at determining when kids were and were not ok, and Kelvin Phillips fell into the latter category. The eighth grader shifted uncomfortably in the desk while Carisi and Rollins implored the members and former members of the PEP Lacrosse team to be honest, to help bring their deceased friends' killers to justice, and to try and recall even the tiniest detail.

As it turned out, Kelvin's detail wasn't tiny, it blew the case wide open, but he didn't give it up easily.

"Man," I already told you too much already," Kelvin snarled at Carisi. Sonny, sensing the kid was hiding something hung around after the meeting and had him taken from class to a nearby office under the pretense that he was being counseled about a failing math grade.

"That's how it's gonna be?" Carisi challenged, trying to stir some guilt in the adolescent glaring at him from under a gray hoodie. "Your friends? Someone killed 'em. And I think you know something else about who did it."

Rollins interrupted, playing good cop, "You know what? Let's not talk about Jarvis and James right now. Let's talk about why _you_ quit the team."

"Didn't like it," he muttered.

"Why not?"

"Stupid game."

"PEP coaches say you've been playing since they started the team. Why is it all of a sudden stupid?"

Kelvin indignantly clenched his jaw and folded his arms in front of him.

Carisi took another run at him. "If there's something we need to know, if you're scared, we can protect you. If someone hurt you or threatened you…we can help, we can stop them before they do this to someone else. And they can pay for what they've done to you and to Jarvis and James."

Rollins reached out and held the boy by the shoulder. "You'll feel better if you just get it out, Kelvin. Do the right thing. We won't let anything happen to you."

Both Rollins and Carisi took deep breaths and they saw the boy's face relax. He looked up at them with big, scared brown eyes. "You really can protect me and my mom and my brother?"

"Yes," Rollins assured.

…..

Around the same time Kelvin was spilling the story to Rollins and Carisi, the Narc dogs detected the presence of heroin in the bedroom of James Hayes. The actual drugs weren't there, but they had been at some point of time. The dog signaled its handler at the rear of James' bureau.

Mrs. Hayes, already traumatized and in shock, looked on as Fin moved the dresser away from the wall. The Berber carpeting had been pried loose and so had one of the subfloor boards. Olivia handed him a pair of gloves. Fin reached into the hiding spot and produced a wad of bills. He then dropped it into an evidence bag.

Olivia dialed. "Tucker," she barked into the phone, "I'm ready for the warrants now. Meet us back at the precinct and we'll fill you in."

"Barba?" Fin asked.

"He's in the loop, but he's been in court all day."

…..

For the second time that day, the squad, Tucker, and Draper convened at SVU, this time in Olivia's office. "Everything's at the lab for processing, and we have Kelvin's statement both in writing and on tape," Olivia reported, "Carisi, want to give IAB the run down?"

Sonny looked pleased at being chosen. "Kelvin told us when Jarvis and James were caught with the pot he was there and he got blamed, too. That's why he left the team. Apparently, he'd been in trouble for drugs at school before, so when Cartwright and Dunmore made the deal with James and Jarvis, he immediately took himself out of it."

"What deal?" Ed asked.

"The cops caught them with enough for a distribution charge. They knew all three of them had a juvie history, so they made a deal. Cartwright and Dunmore sent them off to tournaments with heroin, probably confiscated from dealers here. Remember, Dunmore's in Narcotics. Their contacts, mostly in Philly, were cops too, working security at the tournaments. Easy hand off. No airports or train stations."

"And the last time, the boys didn't hand it off. They sold it?" Tucker guessed.

"Right."

"And turned the tables on the cops. Told Cartwright and Dunmore they would just have to deal with it or _they_ would turn _them_ in."

"We're running their financials and dumping their phones," Draper informed them, "Go pick them up."

"Fin, Carisi, go. Rollins, I know I promised you tonight off. Go ahead on home," Benson told her kindly.

Rollins objected, "Lieutenant, I'm fine, I can—"

"Rollins, really, they need to be processed and they won't even be arraigned until tomorrow. There's not much more we can do tonight."

"Got it, Lieutenant."

"Captain, I'm going down to CSU and press them on the bank accounts," Draper said.  
Tucker nodded. "I'm heading up to the two-eight. I'll call you and let you know if we need to go back to the house, but we're probably on hold until tomorrow morning. " Tucker replied.

Draper nodded and left.

Tucker lingered. "Well done, Lieutenant," he complimented her. "And all before five o'clock. Dinner?" Tucker took a quick peek at the squad room behind him and then rounded the perimeter of the desk toward where Olivia stood leaning against the credenza. "Where's Dodds?" He asked mischievously.

"I thought you were going to Harlem?" Olivia asked innocently, knowing exactly what Tucker was up to.

"I am. But I have another errand, well, not really an errand," He was creeping closer. "Where's Dodds?" He asked again.

"He's taking some vacation days. He has a lot going on."

Tucker was smug. "I'll bet." He was next to her now, making a show of looking her up and down.

Olivia did not budge, playing coy, "What are you doing?"

"Come here." He began kissing her neck. She still faced the empty squad room, worried about one of her detectives returning for a forgotten item.

 _He could have at least closed the blinds._

His lips moved from her neck to just below her ear and then the earlobe. Benson was trying to stand still, be flirtatiously uncooperative, but…" _Tucker_ ," she gasped.

"What?" He asked breezily, still working on her neck but now upgrading to longer, slightly-open-mouthed kisses. He slung one arm around her hips, and he slid his other hand under the front of her blouse, slowly running a finger just inside her waistband, causing her to quiver and clench her abdominal muscles.

"Ed, we're not alone here, there are—"

His mouth was now on the exposed skin between the edges of the V-neck collar. "There's no one here," he whispered.

" _Tucker_." He was driving her crazy now, cupping her buttocks with one hand and stroking her breasts with the other.

"Relax," he murmured, "I've always wanted to do this."

" _Always_?"

He moved to the other side of her neck. "Always since last year."

She felt him against her, hard. His neck was flushed with pleasure; seeing this, her body filled with familiar pre-coital warmth. When he pulled away for a second to gaze at her, his ruddy cheeks and longing blue eyes turned her on even more. _Am I really going to do this? Sex in my office? Sex with Tucker in my office?_ Her world had certainly been flipped upside down in recent history.

Olivia's phone interrupted Tucker's amorous workday interlude.

"Damn," Tucker hissed.

Olivia reached over to her desk and grabbed the iPhone. Tucker's hand was still under her shirt. "They picked them up and are headed for Central Booking."

"Ok." He kept kissing her, but he knew the moment had been lost.

"So…"

"I know. I'm going." He pulled away from her, a hint of a pout on his face.

"Are you coming over tonight?"

"Do you want me to?  
She raised an eyebrow, "I think we have unfinished business to take care of," she concluded with exaggerated sincerity.

He smirked at her and leaned in for another kiss. "I'll bring dinner. How long do you think you'll be?"

"Barba's on his way over. An hour? Maybe two?"

"You're going to nail down the details with him tonight?" Ed questioned, still wary of Barba.

"Probably not."

"Are you two ok?"

Olivia sighed, "No…but we're getting there. And Fin and Carisi will be here, too."

Ed genuinely wished her luck with Barba, kissed her one last time, and walked out, wondering if the novelty of kissing Olivia Benson would ever wear off.

 **Another chapter coming soon! #Tuckson**


	6. Chapter 6

**The Final Chapter-Reckoning**

Cameras flashed incessantly and reporters suddenly fell silent as the four sharply-dressed public servants marched onto the stage. They made a fine-looking quartet.

The new chief cleared his throat and stepped to the podium. His baritone voice reverberated throughout the hushed auditorium as he introduced the panel.

"From the Internal Affairs Bureau, Captain Ed Tucker." Tucker remained expressionless as he stared into the press corps.

"We also have Assistant District Attorney Rafael Barba." Barba nodded. His nostrils flared with a combination of anger and annoyance. Anger because the widespread criminal behavior pervading among the ranks of NYPD enraged him and annoyance because Benson and Tucker looked nearly identical in their black suits and white shirts. Sure, Tucker wore a tie, but the color nearly matched Benson's robin's egg blue earrings. Barba couldn't help but assume the tie was an Olivia purchase since he knew Tucker to prefer a relatively conservative color palette.

"And, to my left is Lieutenant Olivia Benson of SVU." Benson pressed her lips together. Her serious, downcast expression conveyed no false pretense of hope. Everyone in the room knew this would be ugly news.

The chief invited Olivia to speak first. "During the course of the investigation relating to the deaths of Jarvis Lewis and James Hayes the Special Victims Unit continually found the evidence trail leading to a pair of New York City police officers, Benjamin Cartwright and Michael Dunmore. The two officers were volunteers at the Police Empowering People Athletic Academy in Harlem and knew the boys through its lacrosse program. Yesterday, SVU detectives arrested both officers without incident."

Tucker was next. "As of their arrests, both officers have been suspended without pay as per NYPD policy, and IAB will continue to examine evidence related both to this case and previous cases to determine the extent of the officers' misconduct. We will provide no further information until the probe is complete. Considering both men have over a decade of combined experience, it could be a while until IAB's next update. We ask for your patience."

Finally, Barba ticked off a lengthy list of charges including first degree murder, drug trafficking, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The two officers had been arraigned and the judge, considering the gravity of the charges and Barba's argument that they each may have hidden assets, remanded them to Rikers.

The chief refused to allow questions, and he ushered his team from the stage. Once they were out of earshot and not in view of the cameras, he checked his watch. "Lunch?" He asked casually, as if they had wrapped up a friendly meet-and-greet rather than just having informed the world that, in addition to being corrupt, two NYPD cops were also child killers.

Benson absolutely did not want to sit down to lunch with this mix of people. "I should really get back to the precinct. We're short staffed as it is."

Barba and Tucker both tried to sidle their way out of it, too, but the chief was not taking no for an answer.

"We won't be long," he assured them, "C'mon. My treat."

Benson, frustrated by this forced interaction, shot Tucker a look of dread. His eyes drooped sarcastically but also with resignation. They were trapped.

Barba noticed the nonverbal interaction and he stiffened. This could potentially be the least enjoyable lunch of his life.

The chief led them to a nearby Vietnamese restaurant which he raved about for the entirety of the five minute walk. Tucker raised his eyebrows as they walked in. The place was tiny. Quiet. Too brightly lit.

A jovial woman greeted him by name. "Chief Wilkins! Hello! Back again!"

"Yes, and I brought friends. Can we sit over there?" He pointed to the only table near a window.

"Absolutely!"

After learning none of his lunch buddies were Vietnamese cuisine aficionados, the chief suggested he order for the table and Benson, Barba, and Tucker all nodded their consent. On the way they'd passed at least two bars, one, The Whiskey Tavern, was a favorite stop of Tucker's and he desperately wished he and Olivia could excuse themselves and hunker down there for the rest of the afternoon. Instead, he was set to eat unfamiliar food and make uncomfortable small talk in the shabby interior of this restaurant that seemed to be popular only with SVU's top lawman.

Tucker entertained himself by occasionally touching his shoe to Olivia's boot. He liked seeing her shoulders tense and her face tighten as she tried not to laugh.

"Well, the Commissioner certainly is pleased," Chief Wilkins said, "but, Tucker, we need to make sure we fully vet all allegations, even frivolous ones, from here on out. NYPD needs an image boost. We've had a rough couple of months."

Benson was annoyed not only by Ed's under-the-table antics but also by Wilkins implying that Tucker needed to be reminded to take charges against cops seriously. There were obviously dozens of people in the city who needed that reminder, but Tucker certainly was not one of them. Besides, the two cops were targeted because of SVU's investigation, not the other way around.

"Hopefully they'll take pleas," Barba thought aloud in his clipped voice. "It would save their families and the city a long and painful trial."

"Don't let them off easy," the chief instructed.

"Of course not."

The chief switched gears. "So, plans for the weekend?" He asked brightly.

Negative nods all around.

Tucker kicked Benson again. _He_ had plans for _her_. She shot him a quick sideways glare.

Wilkins didn't mind carrying the bulk of the conversational load, "Well, just so you know, if you're ever interested, I have a boat, and with the weather warming up I'll be taking it out more and more. You're welcome to join me."

 _Seriously_? Benson thought.

"Thanks," Tucker croaked, trying unsuccessfully to sound grateful.

"Where's it docked?"

"Inwood."

"A friend of mine has his slip there."

Ed and Olivia sat back in their chairs, relieved that Barba and the chief had found common ground and they could perhaps be ignored. They were finished eating, but the chief did not seem like he was in a hurry to leave. Tucker let his thoughts wander to later when he and Olivia would be alone in her bedroom. He mentally outlined his routine; the details were best improvised in the heat of the moment.

Finally, the chief paid the bill and they left.

Outside, Tucker gallantly placed a hand on Olivia's back and turned her in the direction of his office. "Lieutenant, I'll give you a lift back to the precinct."

"Thank you."

"Well," Wilkins shook their hands, "Great work. Let's keep it up. But first have a nice weekend. Don't forget about the boat. Standing offer."

Tucker and Benson broke off from the group and briskly walked away, stifling their snickers for at least a block.

"Right, like we're going to spend weekends on his boat," Olivia said sarcastically.

"What is he trying to do?" Tucker asked, dumbfounded by Wilkins' generosity and overall pleasant nature.

"I have no idea."

"We're not going. Ever."

" _We_?"

"Yes," he said confidently, "Me, you, and Noah. _We_ are never going on the chief's boat."

Olivia intentionally bumped into him as they walked, "I like the 'we,' Tucker."

Instead of answering he gazed over at her intensely, a little smirk on his face. A pleasant chill fluttered through Olivia's body; Tucker's facial expressions could ignite all kinds of powerful emotions within her.

"So…tonight?" She had been thinking ahead, too.

"I'll be there," Tucker said. "I'm going to take a run up to Narcotics and then I may just head home. Are you planning on staying late?"

"I hope not."

"Keep me posted."

….

For once, Manhattan SVU was having a slow day—a fortuitous reward for working so diligently to bring some sense of justice to the families of Jarvis and James. Olivia arrived at the precinct to find her detectives bantering back and forth in between bites of Chinese take-out.

"You looked good on TV, Liv," Fin complimented her as soon as she walked in.

"Thanks," she replied, "Anything going on?"

"Just buttoning up the reports," Carisi answered cheerfully, "They're ready for Barba and IAB."

This time, mention of Ed's department prompted no sly glances or awkward reactions.

"Ok, great work. Chief Wilkins is very happy and sends his congratulations. We still have a trial ahead of us, but Barba thinks the evidence is strong enough to get a plea."

"Good deal," Fin said.

"Lieutenant, we're leaving Fin to mind the fort," Rollins said, "and we're going to have a drink. Why don't you come with us?"

"And bring Captain Tucker," Carisi's impromptu invitation caused all three pairs of eyes to widen. Carisi, of course, had been informed of the turbulent history between Tucker and SVU, but he optimistically lived in the present, and Tucker had impressed him during the hostage crisis. Sonny actually _admired_ the guy and saw him as a potential mentor much like he viewed Barba.

Olivia did her best to sound normal. "I'll check with him."

…..

When he saw the text, Tucker did a double take.

 _Having a drink with Rollins and Carisi in an hour. Your presence is requested._

"It's not possible this is happening twice in one day," he said out loud to himself. Two awkward social outings in the space of a few hours?

There was nothing to do but laugh.

Tucker wanted to decline, but his desire to make Olivia happy outweighed his reluctance. After all, she asked, and she probably could have found some reason to leave him out of it.

 _Time and Place?_

She immediately responded with the details.

He had ended up going back to IAB after speaking briefly with Dunmore's superiors in Narcotics. This was going to be a long, intricate investigation, but he was ready, eager to do his job and do it well. For now though, he sat back and placidly looked around his office. Stark. Sterile. Ordinary.

Maybe it was time to put Benson's photo on his desk.

Maybe.

….

When Tucker arrived, Benson, Carisi, and Rollins were well into their first drinks. The three of them were seated at a high top table adjacent to the bar. While he was not totally at ease, access to alcohol and the ambiance of a low-key pub made him significantly more comfortable than he'd been at lunch.

Rollins, facing the entrance, spotted him first and offered a little wave.

Carisi turned, and he, too, waved at Tucker and eagerly called out to him, "Captain! Over here!"

Olivia hopped out of her chair and greeted him with a casual hug, "Thanks for coming," she said softly.

He wasn't expecting the physical contact, so he didn't exactly return the affection. He would explain and apologize later.

"Thanks for the invite," he replied graciously.

Their server came over to take Tucker's drink order. He pointed to Olivia's glass. "I'll have one of those, but no ice. Neat."

"Captain, I don't envy you. I think this thing with the cops, it's just the tip of the iceberg," Carisi spoke to Ed like a teenager would speak to a rock star.

Ed acknowledged his point. "Let's hope not," he grumbled, "but…you're right. It could get even nastier." Tucker's drink was delivered. He thanked the waiter and raised the glass, "Cheers."

"To SVU and IAB," Carisi suggested.

"And the weekend," Rollins added.

"And to Fin, may he not have to call us," Olivia joked.

They clinked glasses and drank. The awkward air subsided and for the next hour or so they were just four cops unwinding after a particularly trying week. The topics of conversation, mostly directed by Sonny, moved seamlessly back and forth between their work and personal lives. Carisi told sweet stories about his gigantic family and Rollins reported in on Jessie. They gossiped a little about Dodds, mostly just to make the point that his father had put him in the worst imaginable position both professionally and personally. Olivia had already told Ed privately that she didn't think Dodds would be long for the NYPD world. She speculated he'd move and get a fresh start elsewhere.

Most important for Ed, though, was Olivia's behavior towards him. Unwilling to obscure her affection any longer, she let down her guard. When he was overly cynical, she rubbed his forearm in an attempt to dial back his intensity. When Rollins complemented his tie and he blushed a little, Olivia playfully slapped his back and revealed that it was a gift from her.

"He needs some _shine_ in his life, right?" Olivia explained light-heartedly, "Some variety, some _color_."

"It's very appropriate for spring, Captain. Looks good," Carisi groveled. Rollins rolled her eyes at him and he flashed a sassy smile back at her.

Ed sweetly thanked Olivia for bringing shine and color into his life, leaned over, and kissed her on the cheek. _There_ , he thought to himself, _that made up for the miscue on the hug._

Carisi and Rollins took the PDA in stride. Seeing their boss so purely blissful made them happy and made it easier to leave the past in the past.

The server came and offered another round, but Olivia shook her head. "We should go. I want to get home to Noah."

Rollins looked at Carisi, "One more?"

Carisi agreed.

Ed put down two fifty-dollar bills. "On me."

"Thank you Captain," Carisi said sincerely. "I'll get it next time!"

Ed smiled, _actually smiled_ , at him. Surprisingly enough, Tucker believed there would be a next time.

He and Olivia linked arms and leaned against one another as they stepped out into bustling rush hour foot traffic.

…

As soon as Noah heard a key in the door, he scampered to meet his mom and his Tuck. He hugged both their legs before Olivia picked him up and covered him with kisses. "Hel-lo, Noah, we missed you today," she gushed, hugging him to her tightly.

Tucker said hello to Lucy and moved to the kitchen where he deposited the two bags of Italian food he'd been carrying. He grabbed the glass he had used that morning and poured himself some water from the refrigerator dispenser. There were two bottles of wine on the rack, but he held off on opening one. After three or four bourbons, it would probably be a good idea to put an end to the evening's alcohol consumption.

Olivia and Ed changed into jeans and tee shirts, and they ate on the couch. Noah split his time between his plate of plain spaghetti and his toys which Olivia typically did not allow, but she made an exception on this unexpectedly festive Friday night.

"So we were one-for-two today," Ed assessed, "Lunch was awful. But it was good to hang out with Rollins and Carisi."

Olivia chuckled a little bit at the thought of their lunch. "Did you even eat anything? It seemed like you were just staring, _and kicking me_ , the entire time."

"I did. It was ok," he replied and then broached a touchy subject, "You and Barba…are things…any better?"

Olivia frowned, "We're speaking to one another if you consider that better. We've talked. I explained. Justified. Even told him I understood why he did what he did. I get it, I really do, but…"

"It's _me_." Tucker was no fool. He knew the ADA's problem was rooted in good old-fashioned jealousy.

Sadness momentarily clouded her face, "I think so. That relationship will never be the same and it will take the longest to repair." It troubled her knowing her chummy partnership with Barba would never be as close and tight as it had become over the past several years; she could only hope that it could somehow be reconfigured.

Tucker put his plate on the coffee table. "Hey," he half-whispered, reaching over to stroke the side of her face, "Can you blame him? It must be hell to be in love with you and not be able to do this." He leaned over and kissed her. He pulled back just a bit and stared at her, his eyes oozing with flirtation and desire.

Olivia took a deep breath. "Ed…"

"What?" He smirked. _God, he was sexy when he made that face._

Tucker usually struggled to find the perfect words to describe his feelings for her, but now it was her turn to scavenge for the ideal language. "You amaze me every day," she said, her voice cracking a little as she tried to hold back tears.

It was quite possibly the best compliment he had ever received.

…

A little while later, Olivia scooped up Noah and announced it was bedtime. "Say goodnight to Tuck," she instructed.

"Night, Tuck," he said drowsily and reached out for Tucker.

Ed took him from Olivia and wrapped him in a tender hug. "Night buddy. Pancakes tomorrow for breakfast."

Noah smiled as Ed passed him back to Olivia.

"Come on, sweet boy." She then looked back at Ed, "You wanna turn everything off out here and meet me back _there_?" She tilted her head toward the bedroom.

Another smirk.

Ed got to work flipping off the television and the lamps, leaving only the kitchen night light on.

In her room, he slid out of his jeans, tossed them on the easy chair, and stretched out on her bed with his hands clasped behind his head. He closed his eyes, feeling the weight of the day, the alcohol, and the food bearing down, threatening to send him into a deep slumber before Olivia returned.

His eyes were still shut when Olivia kissed him. "Are you asleep?"

"No," he mumbled, still not opening his eyes.

Olivia kissed his forehead, both sides of his face, and then started on his neck. Ed remained still, fatigued, and also playing a little hard-to-get. "Captain," she whispered provocatively, "I think you want to stay awake a little while longer."

He opened his eyes to find her already disrobed, straddling him, hair pulled back, and necklace hanging down seductively. "Well, hello," he drawled. Ed reached up with both hands, and ran his fingers from her shoulders, across her breasts and her waist, then lower, probing her vagina a little, teasing, before he pulled her down and zealously kissed her, suddenly energetic and finding a second wind.

Olivia tugged his boxers down around his knees and Ed did the rest, kicking them off. Her fingers scratched his chest as she slid them under his shirt. They stopped kissing only long enough for Olivia to fling the shirt from Ed's body and onto the floor. Tucker tried to talk, to enhance the experience with amorous repartee, but their kisses became more and more aggressive. He did manage to gasp "Olivia" a couple of times.

"Tucker, I need you right now," she urged.

He, too, was at the peak of arousal, senses heightened. Olivia's face contorted with satisfaction as he guided himself into her, and she bobbed up and down slowly and deliberately at first before moving at a more vigorous pace.

Ed drew in breath with sharp gasps as he felt himself swelling more and more inside of her. "Oh. My. _God_. Benson. _Olivia_ ," he held her tightly at the hips and she alternated between leaning back and bracing herself against his thighs and tilting forward, digging her fingers into his pecs.

Ed liked to be on top when he came. Olivia knew this, so she offered no resistance when he took her in his arms and flipped positions. His muscles tensed and Olivia grasped his firm biceps as he thrust himself in her as deeply as possible. He reached down to fondle her clitoris, and he felt her back arch and her body quiver as the orgasm engulfed her. A few more thrusts and he, too, climaxed, staring straight into her eyes, trying to convey his love, passion, and appreciation for this moment and every other time they had made love.

Tucker lay sprawled on top of her, partially propped up on his elbows but mostly letting his body rest on Benson's. He brushed damp strands of hair from her forehead and beamed at her, sated, content, and replete with love and happiness. "You are so unbelievable," he murmured in his gravelly voice again finding the need to remind himself that this was real life.

Olivia was starting to get used to the idea of Tucker as a fixture in her life, but that didn't mean she was any less astonished by how _right_ it felt to be with him both in bed and out in the world doing normal things like going for breakfast on Saturday mornings. As she often did, she flipped through their timeline in her head—the tumultuous first decade, a few years of gradual détente, and then, recently, when the enemy became the ally…and eventually the lover. This was not torture nor was it unhealthy; reckoning with the past deepened Olivia's appreciation for what she had _now_. With previous partners she had always held something back emotionally, feeling the need to maintain a steely exterior while also shouldering the burden of being the rock in the relationship. With Ed she could be vulnerable without losing her confidence; she could expend copious amounts of energy loving him without questioning whether or not he would reciprocate. It would take time before this cloak of permanence felt less like a novelty and more like the status quo, but she embraced the change—she hadn't even realized she wanted it—and she welcomed the notion that Tucker added an extra layer of completion to her life.

Olivia caressed the back of his head. "You make me so incredibly happy, Ed," she told him sincerely, so much so that Ed thought it might have been the first time she'd said those words to anyone. "I never want to let you go."

He ran an index finger across her lips before he kissed them. "You'll never have to, Liv," he assured her, and then repeated himself for emphasis.

"You'll never have to."

 **The End! I hope you've enjoyed** _ **Picking Up the Pieces**_ **…Now for the exciting part—comparing the story and what actually happens with canon! Can't wait for #UnholiestAlliance, but I hope the stories have helped fill the #SVUHiatus! Comments or suggestions? Review here or on Twitter fid2916**


End file.
